Wrong previous balance for reconciling

KenBushaw

I am reporting this here because I cannot wait for Quicken support to do anything. They obviously have not found and fixed the problem in years.

I last reconciled my checking account 2+ months ago and all was fine. Today I could not reconcile the next month and all transactions since last reconcile were correct. Then I noticed the previous balance for reconciling was NOT my statement balance for the last reconcile and the new balance was off by exactly the amount that reconcile was off.

I fixed the problem by adding an adjustment transaction for the missing expense and reconciled the last 2 months. I then checked the current register balance against my online bank balance and it was correct after accounting for uncleared items. SO, QUICKEN [Removed - Language] MY REGISTER BALANCE AGAIN!

This is not the first time I have had similar problems and I have seen the problems change my account opening balance and think this one may have done that because it is now a negative value. My current Quicken version is R56.9 (build 27.1.56.9). I feel like there was an update since the last reconcile but am not sure.

This account has records from 2005 onward.

UKR

Are you syncing your Quicken data file to the Quicken server, for use with the Quicken on the Web app or Quicken Mobile on your smartphone?

It's possible that a bug in the sync process may cause your account's Opening Balance transaction to be altered by mistake. Check to see if that's the case of your discrepancy and update the O.B. transaction accordingly, then delete the Adjustment transaction.

To avoid this problem, consider turning off Sync (Edit / Preferences / Mobile & Web)

NotACPA

To check if that Opening Balance has changed, Restore a backup (to a different name, so as to not overwrite your current file) that was created before the issue began.

Write down the OB in each of your banking/card accounts and then compare that list to the current file. It's also suggested that you record, in the current file, the correct OB in the memo field of each account's Opening Balance transaction … so that if the situation occurs again you can quickly determine if an OB change was the culprit.

KenBushaw

I am syncing with Express Web Connect to my credit union and only use Quicken on Windows 10 PC.

No cloud sync or mobile or web Quicken being used. All local data.

I tried restoring a year-old backup and got junk. Literally nothing to look at. Pretty pathetic.

I may try getting a more recent backup from one of my full PC backups.

KenBushaw

I was able to find and restore a Dec 2023 backup and found the correct opening balance.

How lame is it that Quicken would change an opening balance or anything else on its own for that matter.

NotACPA

@KenBushaw That's a bug, that's previously been reported. No indication of when it will be resolved

Tim Johnson

I've recently seen a similar thing happen. My Q database for this account goes back to 1998. The entire database goes back even farther. I've had to use an adjustment to my opening balance to get the reconciliation to be correct. Today was really weird. Q said I was off again when reconciling the three new transactions. I went back and tried to adjust the opening balance to compensate and it was still off. I zeroed the opening balance and this time I was off by exactly what the opening balance should have been. I set the opening balance to that, and the register reconciled correctly. Go figure. I wonder if it has anything to do with Showing/hiding the savings goal transactions. I usually have that box checked. When it's unchecked, my ending balance matches the credit union balance exactly.

NotACPA

To assist, in the future, with the Opening Balance in an account being changed … it's suggested that for all of your banking type accounts you record the correct OB in the Memo field of that OB transaction.

Obviously, this won't prevent the amount from being changed … but it'll make it easier to spot when it happens and easier to know what the correct amount should be.

obsidianjg

I have a similar issue. I checked all my ending balances up to April and they were all correct. I then checked each transaction for May and they all track, but when I run the reconciliation I am off. It tells me the account has already cleared transactions, but I can't find them. They don't show in the register.